System for discouraging distracted driving

• US 10,093,229 B2
• Filed: 04/18/2017
• Issued: 10/09/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 07/22/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nouvelle Engines, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Nouvelle Engines, Inc.
• Inventors: Baker, Robert, Baker, Lynn
• Primary Examiner(s): La, Anh V
• Application Number:
  US15/489,965
• Publication Number:
  US 20180022276A1
• Time in Patent Office: 539 Days
• Field of Search: 340576, 340463
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 9/00 Arrangement or adaptation of signal devices not provided for in one of main groups B60Q1/00 - B60Q7/00 , e.g. haptic signalling
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2040/0818 Inactivity or incapacity of driver
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/45 External transmission of data to or from the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/08 related to drivers or passengers
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/14 Means for informing the driver, warning the driver or prompting a driver intervention

Abstract

A system for modifying distracted driving behavior includes a plurality of radio frequency receivers, each radio frequency receiver coupled to an antenna; and a controller including at least one system indicator, the controller coupled to the plurality of radio frequency receivers and to at least one vehicle indicator of a vehicle. A method with the system includes defining an operator space within a vehicle, detecting presence of a mobile communications device within the operator space, detecting an operator attempting to engage the mobile communications device while the vehicle is moving; and in response, interacting with system indicators and vehicle indicators to draw attention to the vehicle and to the operator of the vehicle, and employing more than one level of accountability.

Claims

1. A system for modifying distracted driving behavior, comprising:

a plurality of radio frequency receivers, each radio frequency receiver coupled to an antenna; and

a controller coupled to nonvolatile memory and to the plurality of radio frequency receivers and to at least one system indicator and at least one vehicle indicator of a vehicle, wherein the controller;

stores a plurality of preset response levels in the nonvolatile memory, each of the plurality of response levels including a different number of the at least one vehicle indicator and a different number of the at least one system indicator for engaging by the controller,

defines an operator space within the vehicle,

receives a periodic control signal from an active mobile communications device,

based on the received periodic control signal, detects presence within the operator space of the active mobile communications device, and

in response to occurrence of detection of presence of the active mobile communications device within the operator space, invokes a preset response level, the invoked preset response level based on at least a number of occurrences of detection of presence of the active mobile communications device within the operator space.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein at least one vehicle indicator is detectable from outside the vehicle.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein the controller adjusts to behavior of an operator of the vehicle by changing to a different preset response level.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein the controller associates the active mobile communications device with the operator of the vehicle and wherein the plurality of preset response levels is associated with the operator of the vehicle.

5. The system of claim 2 wherein the controller generates a violation notification when an operator of the vehicle engages the mobile communications device while the vehicle is moving.

6. The system of claim 5 including a radio frequency transmitter coupled to the controller for transmitting the violation notification to an authority figure.

7. The system of claim 5 including a low-power radio frequency transceiver coupled to the controller for transmitting a signal to the mobile communications device.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein the mobile communications device has a cooperative application operating on it, the cooperative application for communicating with the controller.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein the controller sends a handshake signal to the mobile communications device whenever the mobile communications device indicates its presence within the operator space.

10. The system of claim 8 wherein the cooperative application is for communicating with the authority figure.

11. The system of claim 1 wherein the controller has a plurality of modes of operation including at least one of:

a learning mode for discovering dimensions of the operator space in a previously undetermined vehicle type,

a calibration mode for adjusting dimensions of the operator space in a vehicle of previously determined vehicle type, and

a diagnostic mode for validating that elements of the system are operating properly and for validating that the system has not been tampered with.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein parameters of the dimensions of the operator space define a volumetric extent of the operator space through the use of the plurality of radio frequency receivers, each radio frequency receiver coupled to one antenna of a plurality of antennas.

13. The system of claim 11 wherein predetermined parameters of the dimensions of the operator space for a given vehicle type and configuration are loaded in the nonvolatile memory to establish the dimensions of the operator space for a vehicle type and configuration of the vehicle.

14. The system of claim 13 wherein the predetermined parameters of the dimensions of the operator space and other characteristics of the system are adjustable within each vehicle of the given vehicle type based on recognition by the system of environmental electronic noise.

15. The system of claim 1, including an access device communicatively coupled to the controller, the access device for performing at least one of:

determining dimensional parameters of the operator space,

loading or retrieving dimensional parameters, and

modifying dimensional parameters in the nonvolatile memory.

16. The system of claim 1 wherein as the number of occurrences of detection of presence of the active mobile communications device within the operator space increases, the number of the at least one vehicle indicator and the number of the at least one system indicator included within the invoked preset response level increases.

17. The system of claim 1 wherein the invoked preset response level depends on an interval between occurrences of detection of presence of the active mobile communications device within the operator space.

18. The system of claim 17 wherein as the interval between occurrences of detection of presence of the active mobile communications device within the operator space decreases, the number of the at least one vehicle indicator and the number of the at least one system indicator included within the invoked preset response level increases.

19. A method for modifying distracted driving behavior, comprising:

determining, with a controller, dimensional parameters of an operator space of a vehicle;

storing the dimensional parameters in a nonvolatile memory of the controller;

retrieving the dimensional parameters stored in the nonvolatile memory;

adjusting a preset level of accountability for distracted driving behavior for an operator of the vehicle;

detecting presence within the operator space of each active mobile communications device having a wireless radio frequency communications transceiver; and

in response to the detection, the controller interacting with at least one vehicle indicator and at least one system indicator to draw attention to the vehicle and to the operator of the vehicle,

wherein the controller enables a level of accountability for distracted driving behavior for each operator of at least two operators of the vehicle,

wherein the controller associates each active mobile communications device with an operator of the at least two operators of the vehicle, and

wherein, for each operator of the at least two operators, as an interval between recurrence of the detection decreases or a number of detections increases, a number of the at least one vehicle indicator and the at least one system indicator with which the controller interacts increases for such operator.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein the detecting presence within the operator space of each active mobile communications device having the wireless radio frequency communications transceiver occurs only while the vehicle is moving.